Come along to The Signal Pub to enjoy an evening of the unexpected with a rich mix of personal stories shared in 15 minutes. Our evening starts at 7pm. This months event we ask for a donation (minimum of £10 per person) which will be donated to Pip and her ongoing cancer treatment.
Pip was diagnosed 10 months ago with stage 4 bowel cancer. At just 48 years old the cancer has unfortunately spread to her liver so right now surgery isnt an option. However, along with chemotherapy to try and shrink the tumours she has been offered a newer treatment called monoclonal antibodies which target the tumour cells and turn off the growth factor to help them shrink. In addition this medication also increases the efficacy of the chemotherapy. Hopefully her tumours will shrink to allow for future surgery or at the very least allow for a good quality of life for as long as possible.
This drug is currently the gold standard treatment recommended by NICE. Sadly due to NHS funding rules she was only allowed a certain number of cycles for free, meaning that in order to continue she must fund this treatment herself which will cost £3,500 per month. She has set up a crowd funding page as part of an effort to raise enough money to allow her to have this treatment for one year.
You can donate to Pip's funding page here: www.justgiving.com/crowdfunding/pip-majerski-1
Bloody Good Period was started by Gabby Edlin who decided something needed to be done about the fact that very few food banks and asylum seeker drop-in centres were providing feminine hygiene products - despite a desperate need. What started as a whip-round on Facebook is now a growing enterprise with a vision to end period poverty.
Because asylum-seekers are unable to work while their claims are processed, they are more likely to be living in poverty, often for many years. “Especially the women who have this extra expense because of their biology,” Edlin says.
After the tragic fire in June at Grenfell Tower in north Kensington, where hundreds of people were displaced from their homes, often wearing only the clothes they were sleeping in when the blaze took hold, the charity gave around 1,500 packs of sanitary towels to relief efforts.
“If there were 100 women and girls affected, it stands to reason they'd need up to 500 packs and even more pantyliners, especially as people weren't necessarily able to shower and change underwear.
“We wanted to make sure it was one less thing to worry about for the women affected by such a horrible tragedy.”
Find out more at: www.bloodygoodperiod.com
Alice is founder of A Lotus Rises, the Women's Swimming Collective on a mission to increase visibility, access and participation of women in swimming. The name comes from the Chinese proverb "Out of the water A Lotus Rises" which is used to describe strong beautiful women in water, talented swimmers and overcoming challenges and coming into bloom. Alice believes that learning to swim is a human right, and that whether you’re swimming your first 25metres, splashing in tarns or crossing the English Channel, swimming can empower our lives both in and out of the water.
Alice discovered open water swimming after being knocked off her bike by a lorry on her way to work, the day before her 31 birthday. Waking up on the tarmac as commuter traffic circled around her, too busy to stop to help, she realised it was time to change her path.
Since then Alice has pursued her passions of writing, social justice, water and the outdoors. She is contributing Editor of Outdoor Swimmer Magazine, lead scientist at the International Institute of Swim Cake Studies, a qualified swim teacher, Mandarin speaker, and consultant focusing on projects relating to anti corruption, responsible business, water scarcity, the rule of law and the impact of technology on social and economic development. She is particularly proud to be attending a fellowship programme with the School for Social Entrepreneurs.
When not in or writing about water, her research and advocacy have taken her to China, India, No.10 and the UN.
Find out more at: www.alotusrises.com
Mayoni Gooneratne, was just one year away from becoming a consultant when she quit her job at Lewisham Hospital. She ‘did the unthinkable’ — and quit the NHS, walking away from the career to which she had devoted her life.
Disillusioned with the ‘system’ and being brought down by the bureaucracy, every day Mayoni felt that she wasn’t able to do the job she'd trained to do.’ Across the UK, still only 12 per cent of consultants are female, reinforcing the idea that surgery is one of the last male bastions in the NHS.
Mayoni made a brave decision to leave her life as a surgeon in seek of a career that supported women to find their own beauty and own it without cosmetic surgery. With her extensive knowledge as a surgeon she works closely with her clients to advise and support their ambitions to be the best they can be; inside and out.
Find out more about Dr Mayoni at www.drmayoni.co.uk
Love Her Wild offers opportunities and inspiration to help women find more adventure in their lives. Whatever size or form your adventure may take....let's make it happen.
Bex Band left her job as a teacher to hike 1000km the full length of Israel. 1 year on, she is now a full time adventurer, sharing her advice and inspiration via her blog and living a nomadic lifestyle travelling from one expedition to the next. Coming into the adventure scene as an adult, unfit and with no prior experience or skills, one of her biggest challenges she faced was lack of confidence - especially when she faced sexism. To tackle this and to help other women who felt the same she set up Love Her Wild, a growing community now with over 3000 members.
Find out more at: www.loveherwild.com
Wilford Social is Bethie Hungerford (vocals), Mark Wilkins (guitar and vocals), Andre Roese (bass), and Carlos Basilisco (cajon and percussion).
This summer the band played at Camp Bestival and Towersey Folk Festival as well as venues in London. Recent shows include the Bedford in Balham and the Looking Glass in Hackney for the charity Solace Women’s Aid.
Mark’s musical background is in the rock and indie scene where he has played in bands at London’s dirtiest live venues. Bethie is from the other side of the musical tracks, where she trained as a classical singer specialising in Renaissance and Early Baroque music. Mark and Bethie have found a middle ground in writing and playing acoustic, harmony-driven songs drawing from a shared love of the singer-songwriter tradition. Andre and Carlos joined soon after as the rhythm section. Their backgrounds in Brazilian and Flamenco music have influenced the rhythms and grooves of the songs. Wilford Social’s music has been described as “indie-folk” and a modern acoustic version of Fleetwood Mac. A debut album of original songs is on its way.
Find out more at: wilfordsocial.com